Chương 41: Star Wars : Chapter 41: Cloud City I
Luke had resumed his training under Yoda, who wisely kept himself on the ground while he returned to his handstand. Artoo beeped as he saw the various supply crates begin to lift off the ground.
"Concentrate." Yoda said, "Feel the Force flow. Yes…" Even Artoo began to levitate. "Good. Calm. Yes. Through the Force, things you will see. Other places. The future, the past. Old friends long gone."
The Jedi all mentally agreed with Yoda's statement. One of the most astute attributes of a Jedi is the ability to see the future, an ability they had since used in combat or in other circumstances.
Anakin, however, while considering the Jedi's foresight to be a blessing, it was still a haunting memory to come back to, especially when he failed to save his mother from dying.
"Is it really possible to see the future?", Caleb inquired, curious.
Luke's eyes suddenly snapped open. "Han? Leia!" the objects he had been levitating fell to earth as Luke let himself fall onto his back.
"There you have it...", Kit Fisto observed, concerned of what would happen to Luke.
"Please tell me this isn't the part where Luke would suddenly rush in like his father?", Ahsoka groaned, having seen this scenario multiple times.
Yoda sighed in frustration. "Control, control. You must learn control!"
"I saw… I saw a city in the clouds." Luke said, his voice just above a whisper.
"Hmm… friends you have there."
"They were in pain."
"It is the future you see."
"Future?" Yoda nodded and Luke stood up. "Will they die?"
Anakin flinched at what he had just heard, events from three years ago coming back to him.
Yoda closed his eyes tightly. "Difficult to see." He looked back up at Luke. "Always in motion the future is."
"I've got to go to them." Luke said, making to ready his ship.
Obi-Wan sighed, he knew that this part of Anakin was bound to re-surface soon and from the looks of it, Luke was nowhere complete in his training.
"Decide you must how to serve them best." Yoda said, stopping him, "If you leave now, help them you could, but you would destroy all for which they have fought and suffered."
Luke's face twisted in agony as the words of his mentor and the orders of his gut, mind and heart warred with each other within him.
"What do they mean?" Padmé asked, puzzled, "Saving his friends and ruin everything they worked for?"
"If circumstances are put to question." Mace said with a frown. "Vader is after Luke, that is why he is going after Solo and Organa, to draw him out of his hiding place. Master Yoda knew that Luke, while having great potential as a Jedi, is not strong enough to defeat Vader should he go without completing his training."
Luminara then spoke up. "But if he doesn't go, sure, his friends will be martyrs to the cause, but Luke stays safe and becomes strong enough to defeat Vader and the Emperor for sure."
"So you're suggesting that Luke will just leave his friends behind?", Ahsoka questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"If it's to ensure the defeat of the Sith, it may be", Mace non-chalantly answered, leading to Ahsoka to roll her eyes and Anakin to frown at him.
Meanwhile, the Falcon had reached its destination, but they were kept in the air by a pair of red two-podded fighters.
"No, I don't have a landing permit." Han said to the air traffic controller, "I'm trying to reach Lando Calrissian." One of the fighters made a pair of warning shots across their nose. "Woah, woah! Wait a minute! Let me explain!"
"You will not deviate from your present course." The lead fighter pilot ordered as he and his wingman fell into formation around the Falcon
"Rather touchy, aren't they?" Threepio commented.
"You said it", Rex agreed with him.
"I thought you knew this person." Leia hissed while Chewie growled to his partner
"Well, that was a long time ago, Han. I'm sure he's forgotten about that by now."
"Jabba isn't the only one he crossed, has he?", Shaak Ti asked, concerned.
"Knowing Solo, I'd say yes", Plo Koon interjected.
Thankfully, the group was granted permission to land, and was led to the platform by their guards-turned-escorts.
Han breathed a sigh of relief. "Nothing to worry about. We go way back, Lando and me."
"Who's worried?" Leia asked.
"Took the words right out of my mouth." Ahsoka said.
The city itself was a massive floating parabolic circle-shaped hive with a few spires sticking out of the top. Their landing area was in the city proper, one of many encircling a central building Leia assumed was the administrative heart of the mining operation.
"None of us went to Bespin, no?", Obi-Wan inquired the group, who shook their heads in response.
"The Seperatists did launch an invasion back then despite trying to maintain their neutrality. Thankfully, Master Beti took care of it", Saesee informed the Jedi Master.
"Oh, no one to meet us." Threepio commented as they group exited the ship to find an empty platform leading to a sliding door.
"I don't like this." Leia said.
"Well, what would you like?" Han laughed nervously.
"This did let us land." Threepio said.
"Doesn't mean the coast is clear", Rex pointed out.
"Look, don't worry. Everything's gonna be fine. Trust me." Behind them, the door swung up, revealing a small group led by a man wearing a cape. "See? My friend." He walked up and whispered to Chewie. "Keep your eyes open just in case, huh?"
Chewie growled back at him. "Hey!" Han called out, walking up to Lando confidently.
"Why, you double-crossing, no-good swindler." Lando growled. "You got a lot of guts coming here after what you pulled."
"Is Solo a magnet when it comes to trouble?", Padmé wondered.
"Understatement of the decade, my lady", Anakin interjected.
Han pointed to himself innocently. Lando walked closer. He made to punch Han, and Han brought his arms up to defend, only for his body to be crushed in a bear hug from the laughing man before him. "How ya doin' you old pirate? It's so good to see you!"
"Well, he seems very friendly." Shaak Ti commented.
"Yes." Luminara agreed, still hesitant. "Very friendly."
"Too friendly." Anakin said, cringing at the sight of the man wearing a cape, "He has a strange fashion sense"
"What are you doing here?" Lando asked Han as the others approached cautiously.
"Ah, engine trouble." Han pointed a thumb back at the Falcon."I was hoping you could help me out."
Lando's face immediately darkened. "What have you done to my ship?
"Your ship? Hey, remember, pal, you lost her to me fair and square."
"Least we know were he got his ship...", Caleb commented.
Lando grinned. Oh, he remembered. "And how you doing, Chewie? Still hanging around with this loser?"
Chewie shrugged and growled back.
And then Lando noticed Leia. "Hello, what have we here?" he walked up to Leia and shook her hand. "Welcome, I'm Lando Calrissian I'm the administrator of this facility. And who might you be?"
Anakin's eye twitched. Leia doesn't need another scoundrel around these parts. He could barely stand Han at this point.
"Leia." she said simply and cordially.
"Leia." Lando repeated, kissing her hand.
The audience heard Anakin coughing on the sight with a visible look of worry and disapproval. "Nothing to see here. Let's just watch the film"
Thankfully, Han broke it up before things could continue, "Alright, alright, you old smoothie." Han took Leia's hand and led her away from the ship. Threepio attempted to introduce himself, but was rebuffed, as per usual
"So, what's wrong with the Falcon?" Lando asked, catching up to Han and Leia.
"Hyperdrive." Han told him.
"I'll have my people get right to work on it."
"Good."
"You know, that ship saved my life quite a few times. She's the fast hunk of junk in the galaxy."
"How's the gas mine?" Han asked, knowing the best way to distract Lando was to get her talking about himself. "Still paying off for ya?"
"Oh, not as well as I'd like." Lando said as they started walking the halls. "We're a small outpost and not very self-sufficient. I've had supply problems of every kind, I've had labor disputes- " Han chuckled out loud. "What's so funny?"
"You." he said honestly, "Listen to you. You sound like a businessman, a responsible leader. Who'd have thunk it, eh?"
"You know, seeing you again brings back a few things." he looked at Han for a moment before continuing on, "Yeah, I'm responsible these days. It's the price you pay for being successful."
"I highly doubt that from a scoundrel...", Plo Koon commented.
"He reminds me of Hondo in way, until he would say something about money of sorts", Obi-Wan commented.
"Can you not remind us of him, Master?", Anakin sighed, remembering the trouble the had with him in more than a few occasions.
Threepio continued to bring up the rear of the group as they walked, waiting until he was called for, when he noticed a door open beside him to reveal an identical version of himself, but in chrome.
"Oh! Nice to see a familiar face." He said said.
"E chu ta!"his clone said before waling off.
"How rude!" he heard some beeping coming from beyond the door and moved in to investigate. "That sounds like a P3 unit in there. I wonder if- Hello?"
The audience then gained a sense of deja vu of what would happen to Threepio. "It's not going to end well for him, is it?", Kit Fisto asked.
"You share our sentiments", Mundi replied.
"Who are you?" a man asked gruffly, followed by the sounds of several weapons being aimed at him.
"Oh my! I- I'm terribly sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. No, please don't get up."
Chewie faintly heard the sounds of blaster fire and an explosion even from how far away he was, but decided to investigate for himself later.
"At least we don't have to listen to me for a while." Mace said.
On Dagobah, Luke had gotten his ship cleaned off of the swamp debris and was prepping his for flight. He had put on his flight suit and was going through final checks with Yoda standing on the ground lecturing her.
"Luke, you must complete the training." He insisted.
"Luke for once, get that side of me at this instant", Anakin called out on his son's decision.
"You cannot blame him for taking after you, Skywalker", Shaak Ti told him.
"Gah, I can't keep the vision out of my head." he argued, "They're my friends. I gotta help them."
"That even sounded like Anakin." Obi-Wan remarked.
"No one gets left behind." Rex uttered.
"You must not go!"
"But Leia and Han will die if I don't."
"You don't know that." The ethereal voice of Obi-Wan said, the same apparition Luke had seen on Hoth appearing behind and to the side of Yoda. "Even Yoda cannot see their fate."
"Unfortunately, he has a point." Master Mundi frowned. "If I've learned anything, it's that the future is mercurial at best. They may die, but they might not either."
...
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